Mobile World Congress 2016 (or MWC from here on out) is currently underway in Barcelona, Spain. It’s a big deal. The Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge launched at the conference, Zuckerberg ran around town before walking on stage with a crowd oblivious courtesy of ridiculous VR headsets they were wearing and the LG G5 made an appearance.
This is a tech blog so you’re probably wondering why we are not posting about Mobile World Congress 2016 (okay, okay… I’ll start calling it MWC). I was at MWC last year and it was amazing. So many rad humans in one place just showing off incredible tech. I’m not there this year (truth be told I’m holding out for a trip to New York so I can meet my Snapchat hero Sam Sheffer…. seriously considering starting a Kickstarter to get me there). It doesn’t mean I haven’t been watching all the news and reading about all the exciting announcements.
But that’s the thing, I’m not a news site.
The Verge had their Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge reviews and comments up within minutes of the press conference ending. The likes of Tech Crunch were banging stories out at breakneck speed. I used to think that was how it was done – that I should try break the tech news and be the first one to tell you what was happening. However, I’m not a million dollar website with a host of staff living on Red Bull and electro music blaring into their ears to keep them awake. I’m a blog.
This site is not about sharing the latest news (because a giant brand’s latest offering to pull cash from your pocket is breaking news right? Who cares about like, starving children?) It’s about sharing my thoughts around technology and how it impacts mine and your life as well as the fun stuff. I like fun. So we’re not posting breaking stories about MWC. I don’t have to. I figure if you knew what MWC was you were probably already watching the international news feeds anyway. If you want the serious newsworthy stuff from a South African perspective I cannot recommend Alan Cooper enough. He is my favourite local tech journo.
Instead I’m going to touch on some of the stuff I’ve loved and loathed about MWC so far:
- I think the Samsung S7 Edge looks sh*t hot. It seems they’ve finally got the looks down pat. No plastic crap.
- Phone brands are going to try rip you off with a million different stupid accessories. The LG G5 comes with all sorts of clip on things. The S7 range has a clip on keyboard that turns it into a horrific Blackberry looking debacle. There’s extra camera supports and and and. I get it. You tie us in for a year and bit so you have to find a way to keep excitement up when the lull starts. But seriously? I don’t want to have to buy the add ons.
- KnowRoaming, one of my favourite gadgets that helps you score low roaming rates, launched a software SIM at MWC. You’ll be able to virtually switch SIMs while roaming. They’re also in talks with a handset manufacturer to build their tech in to the devices. Rad!
- Samsung had Zuckerberg on stage announcing a partnership between Facebook and the mobile giant. Basically, Facebook bought in to Oculus who develops Samsung’s Virtual Reality headset. I know everyone got really excited but seriously? The man buys anything he thinks is clever tech. He’ll own the world in the minute and we won’t even notice any more.
- Still on the Samsung bandwagon, my favourite MWC coverage so far has been from Snapchat superstar Shaun Shonduras. He was at the S7 announcement and killed the coverage. No BS tweet per minute repeating what people were saying, Instagram pics claiming to give us first hands on looks at the phone or any of that. Nope, Shaun made Zuckerberg jokes and… now that I think about it… didn’t even show the phone? Doesn’t matter. His coverage trumped everyone’s.
- While internationally Samsung seems to have realised influencers make rad story tellers, I was disappointed to see hardly any local bloggers/Instagrammers/YouTubers at MWC this year. In fact, only Grant Hinds (the guy with pink hair from YouTube) seems to be in Barcelona. LG flew him in to cover the event for them. No other “influencers” (for want of a better term) were around. Pity.
- The one I’m most excited about though? Huawei announced the Matebook. A 2 in 1 Windows device. This is a biggie guys. I have high hopes for the Huawei brand and I think their move into baby laptops (I made that term up) is one to look forward to!
- The final take away from MWC for me, so far? This Apple iPhone 6s I used to check out all the tweets, view the Instagrams and follow Snapchat accounts is blowing my mind and I want to drop some cash on one, no MWC press conference needed.
